Embedded Software Engineer, Motor Control & Real-Time Systems

General Matter•Los Angeles, CA

12h•$150,000 - $260,000

About The Position

We are seeking an Embedded Software Engineer to develop the real-time control software, motor drive firmware, and device drivers that directly command test stands and production systems. This role sits where real-time embedded engineering meets motor control. You'll turn control algorithms into deterministic, fault-tolerant code that closes high-rate control loops, drives power electronics, coordinates distributed actuators over fieldbus networks, and acquires high-speed signals from scientific instrumentation. Safety and accuracy matter enormously in all of it. You will help define the real-time architecture, driver standards, and hardware interfaces of mission-critical embedded systems across R&D, manufacturing/test, and plant operations, working hands-on with hardware from early prototypes through deployed systems. If you seek high impact and are excited by fast-paced, intense, Skunkworks-style projects, we encourage you to apply to join our team.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree or higher in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related STEM field.
5+ years of experience developing embedded, real-time, or low-level systems software.
Evidence of exceptional ability (prior projects, portfolio of work, completed products, etc.).
Strong, production-level experience in C, C++, or Rust.
Hands-on experience implementing motor control firmware for electric motors and drives, such as field-oriented control, sensorless control, PWM, and closed-loop current control.
Solid grounding in control fundamentals (linear systems, discrete-time control, digital filtering, and state estimation), deep enough to implement, tune, and debug control loops on real hardware.
Hands-on experience with real-time systems and hardware/software integration, with a strong understanding of deterministic timing, interrupt latency, concurrency, and device driver development.
Ability to perform trade studies and make clear recommendations from first principles, even with partial information.

Nice To Haves

Experience with power electronics, inverters, gate drivers, and current-sensing hardware, including their interaction with control firmware.
Experience with motor-control-oriented MCUs/DSPs (e.g., TI C2000, STM32, or similar) and their timer, PWM, and ADC peripherals.
Experience with model-based design workflows (MATLAB/Simulink, auto-generated code) and Python for analysis, test automation, and tooling.
Familiarity with advanced estimation and control techniques (observers, Kalman filtering, fault detection).
Experience implementing or integrating industrial fieldbus protocols and masters (e.g., EtherCAT, CANopen, EtherNet/IP, Modbus).
Experience with real-time Linux (PREEMPT_RT, Xenomai) or other RTOS for motion and process control.
Driver and kernel development experience, including bring-up of new sensors, instrumentation, and data acquisition hardware.
Low-level communication protocol debugging and electrical hardware troubleshooting, including assistance in PCBA bring-up.
Experience designing fault-tolerant, observable, and testable distributed control systems.
Background in safety-critical, high-reliability, or regulated industrial environments (e.g., nuclear, chemical, energy, aerospace, robotics, semiconductor).

Responsibilities

Architect and develop deterministic, safety-critical control software on real-time Linux (e.g., PREEMPT_RT) and embedded microcontroller/DSP targets, including scheduling, timing, and fault-tolerant control logic.
Define real-time architecture, driver standards, and hardware interface conventions shared across R&D, test, and production systems.
Implement and optimize motor control algorithms in embedded firmware, including field-oriented control, sensorless control, and high-rate closed-loop current and torque control.
Develop low-level drive firmware for PWM generation, synchronized ADC sampling, current and voltage sensing, and motor feedback interfaces for power electronics and inverters.
Implement estimation, monitoring, and protection functions (state and fault estimation, overcurrent and overvoltage protection) to maximize system safety and reliability.
Build and maintain industrial fieldbus masters and stacks (e.g., EtherCAT, CAN/CANopen, EtherNet/IP) for hard real-time, high-rate closed-loop control of distributed actuators, drives, and I/O.
Write drivers and interfaces for scientific instrumentation, sensors, and data acquisition hardware for high-speed, kHz-class acquisition across low-level protocols and buses (e.g., SPI, I2C, serial, USB, PCIe, Ethernet).
Own software from development through deployment by building automated build, test, and validation infrastructure, including software-in-the-loop (SIL) and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) frameworks for motor control and real-time systems.
Perform safety analyses and validate control logic to ensure deterministic behavior, stability, and functional safety under both normal and fault conditions.
Contribute to integrated system testing, commissioning, and continuous improvement of embedded software running on production equipment.